Farrell's choice should be a warning to all of us

The news that Owen Farrell decided to take some time off to concentrate on his own mental health should be a warning, rather than a  headline to anyone who loves the sport of rugby.

Over the past few years we have seen the rise of social media abuse, which spill over into death threats and harassment offline of officials and players and which has opened up a scary new part of professional sport that needs to be stopped in its tracks.

Rugby is hardly alone in this, as every professional sport has had its fair share of badly behaved fans. 

But social media and its algorithms that amplify negative sentiment have raised the volume on poor takes, harassment and plain old cruelty to such an extent that we’re seeing it more and more spill over into the professional game.

I’ve been one who has criticised Farrell over the years - and the frustration has mainly been towards the disciplinary processes that surround rugby, and not him personally. When he has transgressed and gotten away with red card offences, he has celebrated and this has made him into the villain for most non-England fans.

But underneath it all, it has to be said that he is an exceptional player. Love him or hate him, Farrell is one of the most dominant players in the sport, and his competitiveness, even though it goes overboard at times, is the product of the professional game where winning is everything.

But the news that he will miss the Six Nations campaign is a sad one. Rugby is robbed of a talent that gets people watching.

The game is poorer without these talented players and I’m sure Farrell won’t be the only one who takes a break in the near future.

𝗖𝗟𝗨𝗕 𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧.@owen_faz has decided to take a break from international rugby in order to prioritise his and his family's mental well-being.

As always, Owen will have the full support of everyone at the club ❤️

Full Story 👇#YourSaracens💫

— Saracens Rugby Club (@Saracens) November 29, 2023

Yet, the news should be a warning - a call for not only more understanding, and less abuse, but that rugby is getting very close to losing some of its bigger players because of its inability to manage player welfare.

I recently wrote a book, which is on the shelves now, about former Springbok Derick Hougaard and his struggles with addiction and painpills and the inability to let go after a career that never ended on his terms.

In researching the book it became more and more apparent that he wasn’t alone - and his struggles were before social media. 

I heard stories - anecdotally of other players - both current and past players - who have similar addiction struggles, but more generally how many have struggled to hang up their boots and transform to a normal 9 to 5 life.

PLAYERS ARE HUMAN

I know a lot of work is being done behind the scenes by MyPlayers but it only serves to highlight the demands put on professional sportsmen, who often can’t handle the pressure on them and struggle to cope.

Social media, unfortunately, allows nameless trolls, to hurl vile abuse at players - directly at them, anonymously - so much so that some players have told me they are too scared to open their phones if they think they have had a bad game.

Farrell’s situation - not by his own making - but by some poor administrative and disciplinary work on rugby’s behalf - made him a target.

It was inevitable that at some point that would catch up to him. 

Rugby can do a lot more, including educating players on the dangers of social media, helping with coping mechanisms and taking firm action against those who overstep the line. 

As we heard with referees and TMOs in the World Cup, it didn’t take long for online abuse to become death threats.

The situation is nothing new, and rugby isn’t the only sport facing these challenges, and there is a bigger argument of how social media in society has enhanced cruelty and encouraged this sort of abuse, but that will take bigger and more focused mechanisms to change.

Players can only control their actions on and off the field. They can only play to their talents and sometimes will have a terrible game, or get away with a ludicrous decision that helps their team.

Rugby’s laws are complicated, difficult to administer and both players and officials struggle to get everything right. That they make an entertaining contest out of 80 minutes is often through passion and love for the sport and in spite of some of the laws out there.

You may not like a player, nor the way he plays, nor even think he is good enough to be in a team, but to take the step to abuse any person to the point where they want to run and hide is more a reflection on you than it is of the player.

Players are human, and are flawed, but if every rugby fan played the ball, so to speak, and not the man, we’d all be better off.

Farrell won’t be the last player to need to take a break. But his lesson may be one we need to heed, or we could lose the joy of seeing so many talented individuals on the field because the abuse is simply not worth it.